Shiki seems to be an exception for me in a lot of cases. It is the only show in which I care about the previews (I only watch previews if I’m blogging about a show because I have no choice in the matter LOL). It is also the only show this season where I talk out loud while watching it. It is also the only show where I pounce on the latest episode as soon as it’s out (if i could physically pounce on an episode, I WOULD). What am I saying? I love Shiki and this is the goddamned FINALE!!!!!

Beautiful sunset. Flash to bloody villagers on a rampage. Beautiful sunset. Flash to Sunako crawling out a suitcase and running away. BEUTIFUL SUNSET. You get the idea. As Sunako stumbles her way through the woods and towards Seishin (following the trail of blood), Tatsumi is still leading the villagers away in his car. He gets run over twice, shot at least 5 times and thrown into a ditch. “What a valiant man” I thought as his firetruck red jumpsuit faded from view.

Kaori wakes up in a hospital with her brother and Natsuno. They’re all fine, except for the dog, who probably died a terrible death since it’s not there. Do try to keep up, because now we’re focusing on MEGUMI, who is fabulous and on the run. NEVERMIND HER NOW, it’s all about Toshio. Toshio gets the news of Tatsumi’s death, and growls at them to stake him to death and not just shoot him.

Yamairi is burning all of a sudden, making Sunako’s attempts to escape even harder. The villagers can’t even put out the fire due to the blackout and lack of the ability to pump water near the flames. She comes across Seishin’s body and proceeds to shriek like a little girl (oh wait, she IS a little girl). This alerts the villager’s to her presence, so they chase after her once again. Seishin is just barely alive. Is this a hint of what’s to come that he can see just fine in the dark without his glasses?

Megumi, who is STILL fabulous and on the run, tries to dash across a road and escape. She is distracted by a flashback of Natsuno standing at the bus stop, and is caught while running in slow motion by the villagers. She uses the darkness as cover, but the villagers have lights. Figure that. Megumi pleads for her life, acting like the trendy bitch she always was and calling the villagers “uncool.” As she desperately begs, they mercilessly run her over again, and again, eventually running over her head and staking her to death. It’s a wonderfully malicious scene.

As Toshio and a bunch of other villagers arrive in Yamairi, it’s clear that things are too bad to try to stop it. Toshio sees Natsuno standing solemnly over Tohru’s body, which is all the grieving we need to see for it to really hit home. Tohru is dead, and Natsuno is beyond upset. Natsuno is next seen confronting Tatsumi, ready to fight with the very much alive jinrou. Ahhh, I was tricked.

Sunako stands on the top of a hill, looking at the blazing fire in front of her. This makes for a perfect backdrop so that villagers can spot you, and thus…she is spotted. The chase continues! The other villagers want to try to stop the fire from spreading into Sotoba by cutting down trees. With a fire this big, it won’t be long until the neighbouring villages call the fire brigade. It might be a littttllle odd for them to come and find dead bodies and bloodstains everywhere, so they decide to burn the bodies before it’s too late. The injured, children and elderly? Pshh, they can walk.

The fashion battle continues as Natsuno, strengthened by blood, fights with Tatsumi. Tatsumi seems to be retaliating quite effortlessly, but the tables are turned once they both fall into a giant pit. Natsuno doesn’t smirk, but he knows he has won. Betraying them for the sole reason of disliking them, he pulls out a stick of dynamite and kills the both of them in a huge explosion.

Geijutsu wa bakuhatsu da!

Sunako makes her way to a Church and hides inside. Well, she stands in the middle of the aisle and cries loudly. Face it, she’s not very good at hiding. Ookawa breaks in, looking quite scary against the growing flames. He shows no mercy, throwing his hammer into the small of her back and slamming her against a wall by her neck. He gives a long speech about how many she has murdered (which, ironically, could be turned right back around to him) only to be killed by Seishin.

The fire is now an inferno, and the villagers give up cutting the trees down. This is seen by the flames steadily eating their way up the walls of the Church as Seishin – now a jinrou – convinces Sunako to keep living. God cannot judge creatures such as them anymore. There is no sin, there is no salvation, there is nothing. They are not good, and they aren’t evil. They simply are.

Alright, loli, get back in the suitcase.

The villagers are forced to evacuate. Toshio feels like he’s lost, even though in the end everyone basically survived thanks to him. He has done a good job. Cue a montage of burning, dead bodies, twisted by the intense heat. Gackt returns to his castle, a king without a crown. The firetruck sirens approach the village…as Seishin and Sunako leave it all behind in a car.

Then we get a sort of “the next day” thing which is just people getting on and off a bus…Will we be getting more? Well, according to MAL we’re getting 2 specials…An episode 20.5 on May 25th and 21.5 on June 22. This is AGES away, but makes me smile nonetheless.

One Last Spam:

Manhug tackles: for when you have no clue how to fight.

NOOO MY PANTIESSSSS DON’T LOOOOK!!!!

Working in a model pose while being shot? Only you, Tatsumi.

Bushes. The most effective anime hiding spot known to man.

End Thoughts: That was nothing short of amazing. After being bombarded by lackluster finales, there is finally an anime that gets the last episode RIGHT. There was a sense of impending doom and suspense right until the very end, with both sides constantly on the run. They did an excellent job of building up the carnage from a few episodes back, slowly leading to the end. They jumped around a LOT, which is a bit disorienting at times, but really keeps you on your toes. There was just so much happening, so many characters doing different things in different places, so many what-ifs just…AH! SO GOOD!

The only bad thing about the ending is the lack of closure. While I particularly like the thought of Seishin and his little loli escaping into the night, the ending does seem abrupt. I was leaning on my seat waiting for something more, something I can’t quite place. I could’ve used a few more lines from the villagers to solidify it all in my head, perhaps. I don’t know, but everything ended with such a BANG all at once, the sudden drop-off in tension wasn’t very good. I wouldn’t change the PLOT of the ending in any way, just maybe how it was done? :3 I’m glad there’s that dangling thread of Seishin and Sunako starting a NEW shiki colony somewhere else. And so the horror continues~

I don’t expect a season 2 out of this, so I guess this is the end of the line. This has been one of favourite anime of the year, if not my absolute favourite. Not only that, I had the most fun blogging about it too. Mostly, to be honest, because of the comments. Everyone looks at this show with a slightly different perspective…you guys have brought up things I didn’t even THINK of. Not to mention you manga readers who provide me with something else entirely. I know it sounds lame, but I’ve enjoyed this show even MORE from getting all these outside perspectives and thoughts.

I am going to DEARLY miss this show, but life must go on. Thanks for reading my posts from when I first joined Metanorn as but a little fledgling, wide-eyed and confused. I’ll cut this long drabble before you gag…Just remember. SHIKI IS AWESOME. 10/10. I AM OVERCOOLED, AND THIS SADISTIC MASTERPIECE IS DONE!

Somehow, I don’t get the feeling, that Shiki is over. But when I won’t see the new episode next Friday….. Oh nooooooo~…… T_____T
I LOVED this episode! But as the ending episode, it wasn’t so good. I get the feeling, that there will be more. I would be glad to see more, but the specials are away for like FOREVER, and there are only 2 of them, so T_T
This was definitely one of the best series of the year. As picky and bitchy as I am, I enjoyed it to the bits and would give it 9.5/10. -0.5 for a bad ending O.O
I’m actually glad that Sotoba got destroyed anyway. Fufufufu~ Serves them right for being so brutal 😛

I feel so un-trolled now. The ending was great. Can’t wait until the specials come out *o* …even though I’ve read the manga already. It made me feel slightly sorry for all the Shiki, being massacred like that. Especially Sunako.

You know with all the talk about god between Sunako and Seishin, I just can’t help but wonder what would happen if an atheist became a Shiki.

And Tatsumi is my favourite character from Shiki. AND I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHY.

This show is awesome, I have never watched anything so bloody and gruesome in my life. I marathoned through the whole series in one day so I didn’t experience the joy of waiting weekly XD

The ending was good, I think the doctor guy should just die >_> I wanted to see what happened to Natsuno, was kinda hoping he’ll be alive~ I find it strange how he didn’t meet up with Megumi or Tohru, maybe he was avoiding them on purpose?

I wanted Toshio to survive, he was the glue that kept the humans together. Also, Natsuno knew that in order to kill off the shiki, he would have to kill his best friend Tohru eventually (or let someone else do it), so he stayed away from them. Megumi…well…he never liked Megumi to begin with, so avoiding her isn’t a surprise XD He also wanted to keep his revival as a jinrou on the down-low so no one would know

HOLY JESUS. This was totally epic. While I do think the ending was rushed and wanted more closure on something things, I do think this was deffo one of the best shows this season. It hurts me that it’s so under the radar, but oh well I’m sure it’ll always have a cult following.

Absolutely loved it. One of the top five shows this year, without a doubt.

I know, I loooovvveeedddddddd it!!!! =D I didn’t think it was rushed, I just think I could’ve used like 5 extra minutes of showing where the villagers went or something. It saddens me when people think MOE = BEST ANIME EVER (not that I mind moe) and ignore gems like this one.

Lol! Yes! Seishin has finally risen! And he’s not just any regular Shiki but a jinrou. He must have been rising while Sunako was trying to wake him up. There needs to be a second season! I’d like to see Toshio’s reaction to the subject. He is now Sunako’s new bodyguard since we’re unsure about what happened to Tatsumi. He’s really different now. He even broke his timid, neutral nature and killed someone for Sunako’s sake. Now that Sotoba is burning, he’s freed himself from being a junior monk, the very thing he hated so much.

I guess jinrou rise up pretty quickly after they die, because that felt really fast. Still, it was pretty cool that he became one. :3

I WISH there was a second season, but I know it’s terribly unlikely. Seishin, the quiet monk, killed someone. Yeah, he’s changed alright. I’d love to see how the two carry on, and what Toshio would do. They kind of abandoned the whole “oh no, my friend is on the opposing side and I don’t want to hurt them” dilemma after a while, so I want to see how that would work.

I guess Seishin’s killing without intent is not murder theory is pretty much out the window now. He and Sunako are now two beings forsaken by God. She’ll be there for any more novels he might write. Also, about Yoshie. She took a gunshot to the head but no one staked her in the heart so maybe there is a chance she survived and is out hiding. If so, I wonder if she’s going to join up with Seishin and Sunako and start over since they’re all colleagues now. They can find another village and be careful about their takeover because they can learn from their mistakes in Sotoba and be less lenient with some of the Shiki (Like Chizuru. It was because of her that whole ordeal started. They even killed Shizuka “sob”).

That was one EPIC ending! I’m really gonna miss this show to death. Honestly, I have no idea who I’ve been siding with this whole time. Sometimes I’d side with Seishin and Sunako when I see what the village is doing to all the okiagaris, but then I’d realize how many of them had killed the humans and side with Toshio and the rest.

The show itself was a mixture of awesomeness, creepyness and weirdness, and that’s probably why I loved it so much. It truly is a unique show, and one of the best animes of this year. Now I just have to wait for the specials… <3

I just wanted an epic clash, and that’s what I got. I’m satisfied if there is blood and massive struggling :3 Shiki really stood out from the crowd in a good way. It’s probably number 2 on my top 10 list <3

Megumi was a bitch right up to the end XD
And yet…even though I tried my hardest to enjoy her death and I kept thinking “die, bitch, die!” over and over again…I still found myself getting all teary-eyed.

Also, WHY DID TATSUMI HAVE TO DIE?! T__T As epic as his final moments were, I was literally screaming “FUUUUU NATSUNO!”

That she was. Her death was extremely dramatic and gruesome. Her crocodile tears did make me feel bad that she died so inhumanely, but not enough to stop my enjoyment of the sickening crunch her head made when it was run over XD

Tatsumi? Why did NATSUNO have to die? TT_TT I like both of them but nooo Natsuno….WHYYYY

This ruins everything! They were going to tour the world together and revolutionize the world of fashion! Jinrou style was the next big thing!

XD But actually, I have to say I kinda thought it would have been better if Natsuno had never risen up. His first death was just so depressing, especially since Tohru was the one who killed him and because he never actually did leave the village he hated. Plus, losing a main character so early would have further emphasized the theme of hopelessness.
But still, I was sad to see him go too, it’s just…I have a cat ear fetish >3>

When Megumi jumped over the road and crouched down, it reminded me of No Ones Lives Forever, where you just need to duck into some cover and wait for your stealth bar to fill in order to escape all notice. Too bad for her this is not a video game.

… its over
gahh it was so good.
I know its a little late but I wasnt able to fianlly sit down and watch his ill 3 last night good ending to a great anime at the start of a new year. It feels like there is something missing though… hm. Hopefully there will be something this addicting next season.
and HAPPY NEW YEAR 😀

well im not sure but since the manga has two special side stories as well that i have read they kind of would fit in 20.5 and 21.5 so if they are making the specials based on them well that SUCKS BIG TIME cause i would prefer them to make the specials on what happened after NOOOOOOOOOOO please let me be wrong and let them not be anime versions of the two side story chapters PLSSSSSSSSS!!!!!

I would prefer an epilogue too…there’s a lot more “what ifs” for what happens AFTER than just filling in the gaps. I don’t think we’ll get much more closure than this, sadly. Still…a special is a special, so I can’t really complain XD

This was one of the best anime of the decade for me I absolutely loved I feel so empty now knowing theres no shiki to look forward to anymore but the thought of seishin and sunako forming a new coloney crossed my mind too it would be so EPIC!

Shiki was good enough for me to flame every forum I could with my end thoughts, so there is not much left for Overcooled… (I don’t like repeting myself >.<'). The ending from the 'plot' side was flawless, not much of a shocker, it ended just like it should.

Although, I don't like how the whole anime is directed. Strange animation sequences (Natsuno having a flashback of his own face… that was just big LOL), Bad lyp-sinc, good seijuu's voice getting on your nerves (Toshio's seijuu in the last ep was either drunk or very, very sleepy; plus Natsuno's lipsing) and the ending… it was not putting any emphasis on kimochi. D; *needs more DRAMA*

It’s okay, I know the feeling of commenting multiple times on the same show XD

I quite liked the animation sequences. The way they kept whoever was having the flashback in the scene and just had the images play in the background was pretty cool, and made for some very creepy screenshots if you take them at the right time. Lip-syncing…well, I must admit I don’t pay attention to that unless it’s so horrible that I can’t bear it…so I don’t know if I’d call it “bad” but maybe it wasn’t the best? I’ll look for it in the specials XD I loved the seiyuu though. To me, I felt like they were putting enough emotions forth to make the character come alive.

The ending…yeah…needed a bit more emotions to lead us out. Some sort of bittersweet…THING (I still can’t place what)so by the end we’re not like “Oh. it ended”

Okay, I know this show was over like 3 years ago, but I hadn’t seen it until now, and after BB suggested it to me, I marathoned through it.

What do I have to say? While it was not the best vampire series I’ve seen, it did start off as the creepiest. Unfortunately that creepy factor kind of wore off after the show’s first half. Once that vampires are revealed and they begin their movement in earnest, they kind of lose much of their terror.

This is one of the first shows that’s I’ve seen that tries to bring morality into a vampire show. Most of the ones I’ve seen kind of have the lines already drawn, and while this one makes an effort, I don’t think this show truly accomplished what it set out to do. It was trying to set up a moral dilemma regarding the vampires and the humans, and who is truly in the right here, and who is truly wrong? However, while I think the humans did some questionable things here and there and some things I would see as squeamish, I all honesty I am with them 100%.

I am honestly disappointed that didn’t kill that SOB, Tatsumi in a more epic fashion. And I really wanted them to kill Sunako and that idiot monk Seishein, couldn’t stand either of them, especially that monk, who has made my list for “stupidest character who thinks he’s morally right” ever. I’m glad that they gave Megumi an awesome death, that character totally deserved it.

I think Toshio did a good job, a village is more than buildings and houses, it’s the people. He saved a lot of lives and protected the village as best he could with what was at his disposal. I’m actually surprised that the villagers didn’t believe him sooner. Usually small villages are more superstitious than those from large cities, so it was actually kind of weird to me for them to bring in the “rationalism” card.

For being an interesting series with very intriguing premise, even if the moral points fell flat for me, it is an 8/10 series. I was glad I saw it and will suggest it to others.

@Irenesharda: Thanks for mentioning me Irene. Yeah, it was an awesome series and even after three years since its release, I’m still in love with it and find myself referencing it. I find myself derailing most of the time with that whenever I’m commenting on anything OC makes.

Actually, I and a few others sympathized with Seishin and Sunako’s views. They became our favorites and we were glad they at least survived the massacre. I loved watching their Let The Right One In style relationship. Seishin had his troubles but unfortunately, you won’t be able to completely understand his character because the most important parts of his personality in the manga was cut out to support the time frame of the show. And to be honest, I never liked Natsuno and Toshio got to me in a negative way after what he did to his wife.

Besides, Seishin was the most main character out of the others because his fight was psychological while the others were physical and he was unintentionally the reason the vampires came to Sotoba in the first place because Sunako read his occult novels and felt she and he had a connection and it proved true they deserved to be together.

Hmm, I’m the opposite actually. My favorite characters were Toshio and Natsuno and my least favorite were Tatsumi, Megumi, Sunako, and Seishin. I think everything in a way was a battle of the mind. The Shiki played mind games with many in that village, especially the ones who were a threat to them like Toshio and Natsuno. That one episode after Kyoko’s final death where Toshio could get no one to believe him, and realized that the Shiki had pretty much taken over the town really got to me. You could see that at this point, he had found the answer but there was really nothing he could do because he was so alone in his fight.

Seishin I felt was running away from all the big questions that Toshio posed and instead just hid behind some vague morally ambiguous philosophy. Honestly, I saw no reason for him to protect Sunako, a little witch of a girl who is the name of “survival” despicably deceived, manipulated, bullied, and murdered to bring a village to its knees. Was it worth it? The cost of your family and your friendship? Did you want to give up that badly, that you’d rather join them than fight them? I liked Seishin in the beginning, but after the whole Kyoko fiasco, he really went downhill for me.

That’s not to say that I would have him excuse Toshio, what Toshio did to Kyoko was unethical and cruel even by scientific standards, however, I can still see where he’s coming from and the desperation he had after the Shiki literally came into his clinic to rub his face in the fact that he was powerless and they were going to keep him that way. That HE was subject to THEIR whims and desires. Anybody already at the end of their rope would snap from that.

They could bring in that “we kill to survive” bullcrap all they wanted, but the truth is they had lost their moral center. Only some like Ritsuko, Tohru, and Natsuno seemed to have kept theirs, while everyone else just seemed to delight in their hedonistic lifestyle where they could do what they wanted with no consequences. Sunako make look cute and she may have had her reasons, but she was just as much of a bully and a murderess as everyone else. In fact, more so, since she’s their leader, meaning she allowed everyone else’s behavior to go on. There are plenty of moral vampires in literature and media, who also have to drink blood to survive, but don’t do half of what these guys did, so that’s not really an excuse. Also, despite this, if the food has the ability to fight back, they have just as much right to kill you to save their lives as you say you do to take theirs. So no, I can’t seem the Shiki as the victims here.